Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo Seems to Hint at Future NBA Plans After Luka Doncic Trade

Matt Levine | Feb 3, 2025

Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

After the Milwaukee Bucks lost to the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday, star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo had some interesting comments regarding European star players. The veteran was speaking about the blockbuster trade of Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers and his comments were a little strange.

"Now that a European will be, I believe, the face of the Lakers, this is something new for Europe. It's never happened before....now I just love it. You know what I want? I want Luka to the Lakers. I want Jokic to the Knicks. I want all the Europeans to go to all the big markets to see something incredible. This is what I want. This is my dream."

Giannis????????? 😳😅 https://t.co/VCIy4vGf2e pic.twitter.com/QQr54PEQDb

— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) February 3, 2025

While it remains to be seen what will happen with Antetokounmpo and the Bucks, Milwaukee may feel a certain way about this. However, Antetokounmpo has already said previously that he could be traded if the team doesn't win.

Before the season, the Bucks star was very open about the possibility of him being moved.

“If we don’t win this year, would you get fired?” Antetokounmpo asked the staffer. “Do you have it in the back of your mind, like, ‘[What] if this year doesn’t go well?’ Yeah, if we don’t win a championship, I might get traded. Yeah, this is the job we live. This is the world we’re living in. It’s everybody.”

Even earlier this season, there was talk about the Bucks trading Antetokounmpo when the team started very slowly. The NBA is a business and with the Bucks being a smaller market team, it tends to be harder to keep star players around.

Damian Lillard is an aging star and Khris Middleton has seen a big drop in his overall production. This could open the door for Antetokounmpo to either ask out or leave when he is a free agent.

If Antetokounmpo is deadset on going to a big market, the Lakers would make some sense. The forward could pair with Doncic in Los Angeles to create one of the more explosive duos that the NBA has ever seen.

For now, Antetokounmpo remains with the Bucks and is looking to bring Milwaukee another title. But his future remains up in the air, especially given the current state of the team and roster.

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